Antrodia cinnamomea (AC), by name niu-chang-chih or jang-jy is an endemic fungus in Taiwan and grows in the internal heartwood (or the dark/humid wood surface) of the particular Cinnamomum kanehirai in 400 to 2000 meters altitude. Therefore, it is uneasily to find out the wide fruiting body of AC or identify the morphological appearance of this Aphyllophorales fungus. In addition, the price of AC is still high due to their biologically active components having potential pharmaceutical value.
Since the fruiting body of AC cannot be easily found and be artificially cultured, mycelia products of AC are popular in the market and announce to own anticancer activity, reduced treatment-related symptoms and other side effects. In addition, mycelia products of AC have recently been reported to have anti-oxidant, antihypersensitive and immunostimulatory effects (Liu et al., 2007). It has been claimed of these mycelia products that they contain active components similar to the wild fruiting bodies with cytotoxic triterpenes, steroids, as well as immunostimulatory polysaccharides reported previously (Chen et al., 1995; Yang et al., 1996).
Traditionally AC has been used as health food to prevent inflammation, hypertension, itchy skin and liver cancer. Therefore, extracts of mycelia and fruiting body of AC are deemed as a potential chemotherapeutic agent against hepatoma, as well as prostate, bladder, lung cancer cells and so on (Chen et al., 2007; Hsu et al., 2007; Peng et al., 2007; Song et al., 2005; Wu et al., 2006). However, the chemical distribution and pharmacological research of niu-chang-chih products are not clarified up to now.
In addition, Taiwan Patent No. 1299665 discloses the extract of AC and the preparation thereof, in which the mycelia of AC is extracted with ethanol to obtain polysaccharides for inhibiting matrix metalloproteinase activities. However, the extract is not extracted with the fruiting body of AC, and the mycelia product thereof cannot inhibit cancer cell growth. Taiwan Patent No. 1279439 discloses that the mycelia of AC is cultured to obtain the cultured products by adjusting pH value of medium. However, there is no extraction method disclosed. Taiwan Patent No. 591110 discloses that γ-aminobutyric acid is extracted from the lyophilized mycelia of AC with water or organic solvents. However, the above-mentioned inventions did not disclose any product of the fruiting body of AC extracted with water or organic solvent, and there is no targeted second metabolites contained in the AC being identified.
It is therefore attempted by the applicant to deal with the above situation encountered in the prior art.